BIOCRITERIA AND CITIZEN INVOLVEMENT: IMPROVING LAKE AND WATERSHED MANAGEMENT, DECISION MAKING, AND RESTORATION

Jeremy Williamson, Polk County Land and Water Resources Department

The traditional focus in lake ecosystem assessment and regulation is chemical endpoints, while physical and biological endpoints are largely ignored. Increasing urban development is disrupting the physical integrity of lake ecosystems while invasive species have a similar effect on biological integrity. Chemical criteria alone are unlikely to set realistic goals that could restore the Nation's degraded waters. Biological data is superior to chemical criteria because it links human impacts and designated uses, shows stressor specific responses, and integrates environmental conditions over space and time. In fact, it is typical for biological criteria to detect 30 - 100% more impairment in streams than chemical or physical criteria alone.

While biological monitoring and evaluation can identify environmental stressors with great accuracy, citizen involvement is crucial in solving such extensive and complex natural resource issues. This requires both cooperation and a high level of active participation from citizens, stakeholders, and entities which have a vested interest in either the scientific process, or the outcome of the research or study. This presentation highlights these points within the Osceola Creek watershed, a direct drainage to the St. Croix River.